The Grand Hotel Kronenhof spa's pool

Europe may only now be emerging from another wicked winter but just as every cloud has a silver lining each downpour of snow only enhanced conditions throughout the continent’s ski resorts. With transport services back to normal and conditions close to perfect, Running in Heels profiles this year’s best ski breaks.

Best for Spa and Sanctuary

On the chichi ski circuit it’s the Swiss resort of St Moritz that throws the most lavish parties but those looking to truly unwind would be best advised to stay elsewhere. Just seven kilometres from the chintz and glitz of St Moritz, Grand Hotel Kronenhof rests in the tranquil village of Pontresina and its recently renovated spa has become something of a haven for stressed-out skiers and spa connoisseurs. In fact, founder of both Wallpaper* and Monocle, Tyler Brule is declared it his ‘best Alpine spa’. You’re likely to be similarly impressed on your own visit.

The spa’s interior is tastefully but demurely finished in local stones and wood. The view of pine-draped Alpine peaks and the shimmering Roseg glacier from the spa’s floor-to-ceiling windows should have you feeling inspired and invigorated even before you’ve considered submitting your knotted body to one of the in-house therapists. But do ensure you indulge in a treatment regardless. The usual array of peels, massages and facials are available in abundance but are given a Swiss twist with the use of local ingredients – such as Alpine honey and mountain crystals for the skin-tingling body wrap.

Doubles at the Grand Hotel Kronenhof start from CHF530 (£350/£425), half board. Prices for spa treatments vary.

Best for Gadgets and Glamour

Glamorous ski resorts and fashionable chalets abound but technophiles and trendsetters alike will be particularly taken with More Mountain’s portfolio of well-equipped properties in Morzine in France. Take La Cabine for instance. A catered chalet that sleeps up to 12 people, it’s got so many gadgets and gizmos guests may need to be reminded to leave the property on occasion. A separate games room comes complete with a Playstation, Nintendo Wii and iMac – if you’re incredibly old fashioned you can also delve into a decorative pile of board games in the corner – and iPods and portable, personal DVD players provide entertainment on the go.

Technology addicts can even feed their craving on the slopes by using complimentary Garmin GPS devices and digital walkie talkies but it’s the more light-hearted and indulgent features that are perhaps the most appealing. After throwing another log on the rotating fireplace, you and your significant other can sizzle in the outdoor hot tub while sipping homemade toffee vodka. An evening’s entertainment that reads like a seduction strategy from an investment banker suffering a mid-life crisis perhaps, but a night to remember nonetheless!

Prices start at £499pp (€600), based on two sharing, including board and numerous extras.

Making tracks in Austria's Kühtai

Best for Intrepid Explorers

Sometimes it’s not enough to simply hurtle yourself down a mountain at breakneck speed – how can you enjoy an authentic adrenalin shot when that morning’s virgin powder has already been creased by the hoi polloi? It’s that mindset (probably) that lies behind one of winter sport’s newest phenomena: ski touring. A mixture of skiing and mountaineering, explorers and adventurers suit up and clamber along valley and vale in search of unknown ski routes and unsullied vistas. The appeal’s obvious but so are the risks. Venturing into the icy unknown alone is an invitation for catastrophe so it’s best to choose a region with a traversable topography and enlist the services of an experienced guide.

Renowned as one of Austria’s best resorts for organised ski touring expeditions, Kühtai ticks all the boxes with guides on hand and some 30 different routes reaching peaks of 3,000 metres. Reaching the mountains’ summits is a hard slog but the serenity and exclusivity of your own private piste – not to mention the uninterrupted views over the snow-clad Austrian countryside – make it all worthwhile.

Ski Touring, including guide, transceivers, probe & shovel costs from €40 for half day group tour or from 80€ for a full day and can be booked through Thomas Haider Schischule.

Best for Adult-Only Antics

When you think about it there are few breaks less suited to young children than skiing holidays: there’s just something… let’s say ill-conceived, about strapping rigid planks onto the feet of toddlers who’ve just learned how to walk and propelling them down a rugged cliff face in sub-zero temperatures. So we’re sure it’s as a result of moral indignation at wayward parents’ negligence that a growing number of experienced adult skiers actively seek child-free accommodation (the resultant tranquillity being a trifling coincidence).

Located in the resort of St Martin de Belleville in France, the snug Chalet Abode is tastefully modelled on a Savoyard’s farmer’s house and caters to the childfree with a series of ‘Adult Only’ weeks. Perfect for couples who can’t afford to rent a private chalet but similarly don’t want to confront a stranger’s snot-encrusted tot at the breakfast table, stays at the property begin with days of unimpeded skiing on the region’s 600km of ski routes and end by the fireside, where a personal chef prepares sumptuous specialities for the chalet’s sophisticated and smugly serene guests.

Adult only weeks – 16^th, 23rd, 30th January, 6th & 13th March 2011. Prices from £745pp (€900) (includes seven nights’ accommodation and board, daily driver service until 10.00pm, local taxes. Excludes all travel).

Best for the Non-Committal

A snow-sculpture of Pavarotti

Lots of people don’t see the point in paying good money to essentially spend a holiday outdoors in freezing weather, exercising, but a trip to Val Gardena could well convert them. A valley in the Italian Dolomites, the entire region was designated a UNESCO World Natural Heritage zone in 2009 and is as spectacularly beautiful as the accolade would imply. Most holidaymakers reside in one of the three local Alpine villages (Ortisei at 1236m, S. Cristina at 1428m and Selva at 1563m) and a 1200km-long ribbon of slopes connects the resorts, with plenty of tracks suitable for complete beginners.

If the skiing doesn’t work out despite that then there are plenty of other activities available (like sleigh riding, paragliding and hiking) and the three villages coordinate their cultural calendars to ensure there’s always something entertaining happening off-piste, be it a snow-sculpture competition or a carnival. But perhaps the biggest lure for would-be, could-be skiers is that they don’t have to spend too much to experience the sport. The area is accessible from Verona, Bergamo, Brescia, Munich and Innsbruck airports so there are plenty of budget airline routes to choose from, and the newly opened and unexpectedly stylish Saslong Smart Hotel has shaken up the local hotel industry with exceptionally low prices and frequent promotional rates – double rooms for the 11/1/2011 were offered for only €11 for example.